Update: Nov. 3, 2021 12:40 a.m. EST.

Republican Glenn Youngkin has defeated Democrat Terry McAuliffe to be Virginia’s next governor, multiple outlets project.

According to CNN, he is the first Republican to win a statewide election in Virginia since 2009.

This is a developing story.

---

Update: Race for Virginia Governor Too Early to Call

Virginia’s governor’s race is too early to call, according to the latest poll results.

With 26% of precincts reporting, Republican Glenn Youngkin has maintained a lead over his Democratic rival Terry McAuliffe, according to Decision Desk HQ.

Virginia Gubernatorial Election

Youngkin (R): 51% (419,158 votes)

McAuliffe (D): 47% (391,620 votes)

Estimated 26% in

More results here:https://t.co/HuO41nXscQ

— Decision Desk HQ (@DecisionDeskHQ) November 2, 2021

In a note to his supporters, McAuliffe wrote:

It’s official — this race is over. The last polls in Virginia have closed, and now we wait for all the votes to be counted….
“No matter what happens tonight, I am blown away by what this grassroots team has been able to accomplish…
“So when the results of this election come in — win or lose — we can rest assured that we did everything we can to create the future that we want.

---

The candidates in Virginia’s gubernatorial race are in a dead heat, in what pundits say could be a referendum on national politics ahead of next year’s midterm elections.   

Democrat Terry McAuliffe and Republican Glenn Youngkin are virtually tied a day before Tuesday’s election. According to FiveThirtyEight, Youngkin leads the polls at 47.8%, while McAuliffe is at 46.8%.   

Early voting figures show over 670,000 Virginians have already voted early, with more Democrats casting their ballots, CNBC reported.  

President Joe Biden hit the campaign trail for McAuliffe on Tuesday, telling Virginians, “You all know the stakes.”   

“You don’t have to wonder what kind of governor Terry will be because you know what a great governor he was. It wasn’t just because of what he promised, it’s what he delivered,” Biden said.   

RELATED: Finally, Boston’s Next Elected Mayor Won’t Be a White Man

McAuliffe previously served as the state’s governor between 2014 and 2018. Virginia law states governors can’t serve consecutive terms, per Vox.  

Biden’s attempt to energize voters in Virginia may fail since 52% of people in the state disapprove of the job he’s doing amid a stalled economic agenda, according to a Monmouth poll. His approval numbers may come as a bit of a surprise, considering he won the state by 10 points during the 2020 presidential election.   

Youngkin, a supporter of former President Donald Trump, has kept the one-term president at arm’s length while running to replace current governor Democrat Ralph Northam.   

“Terry’s opponent has made all of his private pledges of loyalty to Donald Trump. But what is really interesting to me is he won’t stand next to Donald Trump now that the campaign is on,” Biden said. “Think about it. He won’t allow Donald Trump to campaign with him in this state.”  

Prominent Black leaders, such as former President Barack Obama and Stacey Abrams, have also hit the campaign trail urging voters to get behind McAuliffe.   

Polls show Black Virginians overwhelmingly support McAuliffe over former private equity executive Youngkin, but with Biden throwing his support behind the former governor while parts of his agenda, such as voting rights, stalls in Congress, Black voters may think twice about casting a ballot for McAuliffe.   

RELATED: Multiple Candidates on NYC’s Ballot For Mayor, Adams and Sliwa Take Centerstage

Youngkin’s attempt for the Black vote is more of an uphill battle. Not only is he lagging behind McAuliffe, but he said that he would ban schools from teaching critical race theory on his first day in office, according to Newsweek.  

“We all know education starts with curriculum,” Youngkin told supporters at an Oct. 23 rally. “So let me be clear: we will teach accelerated math, we will award advanced diplomas and we will teach all history, the good and the bad.”  

The Republican candidate for governor also had an ad that featured a supporter who tried to have Toni Morrison’s Pulitzer Prize-winning book Beloved banned.   

In addition to banning critical race theory, Youngkin plans to strengthen police departments across the state, address rising crime in Virginia, cut regulations to aid in job growth and require IDs to vote.   

Policies that McAulffie plans to address if elected are affordable healthcare, tackling climate change by getting Virginia to 100% clean energy by 2035, helping Black Virginians build wealth by investing in Black-owned businesses and reforming the state’s criminal justice system, according to his campaign site.   

Such a tight race may be a make-or-break situation for the Democratic party, which has slowly turned the state blue in the last 15 years. President Obama famously won the state during the 2008 and 2012 presidential elections, and Democrats have won statewide races since 2009.   

All eyes will be on the Virginia race as it’s a barometer of what happens at the 2022 midterm elections. Democrats have a tough fight ahead of them in next year’s midterm elections, where they could lose power in the House and their razor-thin lead in the Senate.